British cycling team has bike stolen in 'violent robbery'

British domestic cycling team JAKROO Handsling Racing were victim of an armed robbery over the weekend, in which one team bike was stolen.

The incident took place in Putney, South London, at around 3pm on Friday afternoon.

According to an Instagram post by the team, two thieves, dressed in black and wearing face coverings, tore the bike from the roof rack of a car parked in a residential street, and made off with it on a moped.

One thief also threatened one of the team managers with a “large knife”, the team said.

A second bike was left “completely destroyed” but still attached to the roof rack.

The team shared a video of the theft on Instagram.

Revealing the incident, JAKROO Handsling wrote: “Today at 2:55pm, two thieves in balaclavas on a moped stole our team bikes directly off a locked roof rack in a residential street in Putney.

“One of them jumped onto the team manager’s car and physically ripped the bikes off the locked rack, while the other waited on the moped (with a license plate PK24 EXD).

“When confronted by one of the team managers, one of the thieves brandished a large knife and threatened them (off camera). The thieves then sped away with one of our red JAKROO Handsling bikes. They left the other one completely destroyed, hanging mangled off the roof rack.”

The incident was reported immediately to the Metropolitan Police.

Asked by Cycling Weekly for more information, David Streule, JAKROO Handsling's joint manager, said: "The Met police arrived within 10 minutes and took statements. They also sent a forensic expert to lift a boot print from the car bonnet.

"As far as we are aware no one has been caught or arrested so the boot print is unlikely to yield any benefit."

Cycling Weekly contacted the Met on Monday to ask if the incident is still being investigated.

In late 2023, Cycling Weekly reported on a spate of violent bike robberies in North London after members of the Regent’s Park Rouleurs were targeted on three separate occasions. In October 2021, British pro rider Alexandar Richardson was mugged for his bike in Richmond Park by four balaclava-wearing thieves.

There were further reports of bike muggings in London last year.

“Bike theft in London has become organised and brazen,” JAKROO Handsling wrote in their Instagram post. “Today it crossed the line into violent robbery. Senseless really, when you realise how much damage the bikes sustained as they were in the process of being stolen.”

The stolen bike is a Handsling A1R0evoS, a model that starts at £5,749.99.

JAKROO Handsling are one of eight men’s Elite Development Teams that compete in the British domestic scene. The are the successor of Raptor Factory Racing, and run by managers Tony Poole and David Streule.